Hard hearts and Soft Hugs

Chapter 1

Fuck. He left me here, waiting. In the pouring rain. No umbrella, no jacket.

This is fucking ridiculous. It really is. And I can't go home; I can't just 'call up mom and pop.' I'm supposed to be "sleeping over" at the house of the girl (aka Charlie) who hasn't lived there as long as we've stopped being friends.

The fuck am I supposed to do?! "This is just great." I begin to whisper as I pace the sidewalk, trying to warm up from the winter air.

Jason Goldridge, my current boy toy, the one who completes me like the stars complete the nighttime sky. We were supposed to spend the night together, me coddled up in his tan skin, staring at his hazelnut eyes. Him enjoying the fact that he doesn't have to let me go, at least, not until tomorrow evening.

But he never came to get me.

He and I, we planned this for weeks. We planned this whole rendezvous together, starting with what I was going to bring to what we were going to eat for dinner the next day.

But he never came. He never called. He never texted. 

And now I'm here, stuck in the freezing rain with nothing but my shit getting fucked up! Yea, this is MY idea of a great date, THANKS JASON!

I guess I'm starting to yell; the lights in the houses beside me are popping on like fireflies. Next thing I know, the police"ll be chasing after me. And I don't need a second strike.

I'm still standing in front of Charlie's old house for the next couple of minutes before I give up and start walking home. I've only got a couple of minutes to make up a lie, something that will make me seem more innocent than I really am.

I start talking to myself, hoping that maybe the lie I create would sound convincing. But all of my lies are shit and none of them would appease my mother's desire for my whereabouts without her becoming suspicious and having to "find out for herself". She's been like this since the police brought me home one night drunk, high, and possibly not a virgin.

I'm thinking so hard about what I'm going to tell her, that I almost don't notice the 1997 Prius that's been driving beside me. I stop walking and it stops moving. I'm about to start running, not sure if the person following me is one of my crazy ex-girl friends or an undercover cop trying to catch me fucking up.

I get about 2 feet away from the car before I see the familiar red-hair of my boyfriend. I let out a sigh of relief and start to walk back, ready to give Jason a piece of my mother-fucking mind. I reach the car as the window finishes rolling down and out pops Mr. Goldridge, Jason sitting beside him like a prisoner of war.

The look Mr. Goldridge gives me says 'Get in the Car.'

Shit.

                                                                                          *

""Thank you so much Mr. Goldridge for bringing Elsie back home." mom says to Jason's dad. She's glaring at me but smiling at him at the same time. I didn't think that was possible, but with mom, anything is possible.

I scoot past her and into the living room where I put my drenched body in her favorite white recliner.

"It's no problem Ms. Thompson. I'm just glad I caught the two before they decided to do anything... report-able." Mr. Goldridge replied while looking at me in disgust. I'm not the most... desirable of girlfriends Mr. Goldridge had the displeasure of meeting. 

Ever since he caught Jason and me make out -naked *cough cough*- on his couch, I've become the bad role model that parents like to hide their children from, people like Miley Cyrus or Justin Bieber, yea that bad.

I nearly drift off before Mom finally closes the door, anger spewing from every part of her body- from her crystal green eyes to her perfectly manicured toenails-and her face looks like she's ready to explode.

"Elsie Mayden Polk!" her voice reaching as high as a tea kettle's whistle, making it obvious that she's pissed.

"How dare you lie to me?! I gave you a chance to redeem yourself. Elsie, I was trying to trust you, to get you to show me that you're still MY daughter and not some other tramp off the street. But you've proved me wrong, you showed me your true colors. And I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANYMORE ELSIE! I really can't."

I stare at her, too tired to giver her my signature comeback that pisses her off so well. My fingers and toes are frozen, my head feels like it's made out of stone and my body feels like death. On a scale of 1-5, this 'argument' doesn't even make it past 0.

She's staring at me, with those hate-filled eyes of hers. Unwavering, unfaltering. Just staring.

"Elsie, go to your room. I can't even stand to look at you anymore. And don't come out until I call you for you." She doesn't have to tell me twice. I stumble along up the stairs, fumble the door knob and walk into my  room, passing out on my bed, not even bothering to take off my shoes or change.

                                                                                            *

The sun through my window says get up, but my body says die. I would have thought that last night's 'occourances' were just scenes in a bad dream, until I see a not on my bed

Elsie,

pack your things. enough for a few weeks. Then meet me in the car.

This isn't abnormal of her. She's probably going to take us on a road trip to "discuss our grievances" or whatever. 

She's into the whole "hippie parenting techniques." Whatever the hell that means.

I don't have a lot of clothes, so it doesn't take me too long to get ready to go. I packed my laptop and cell phone, even though she hates it when I do this. She just doesn't understand, my laptop is my life, and without it, hell will freeze over. 

Mom's in the car already, has it revved up and everything. She doesn't look up from her reading material -a pamphlet?- as I put my stuff in the trunk, or even as I get into the seat beside her.

She just slides the pamphlet into her purse, buckles her seat belt, and starts driving.